Balumnia Trilogy

James P. Blaylock's debut novel The Elfin Ship has become a classic of whimsical fantasy. With echoes of Kenneth Graham and Mark Twain, it's a gentle, eccentric and hilarious novel that will delight readers of all ages. Trading with the elves used to be so simple. Every year Master Cheeser Jonathan Bing would send his very best cheeses downriver to traders who would eventually return with Elfin wonders for the people of Twombly Town. But no more... First, the trading post at Willowood Station was mysteriously destroyed. Then a magical elfin airship began making forays overhead: Jonathan knew something was definitely amiss. So he set off downriver to deliver the cheeses himself, accompanied by the amazing Professor Wurzle, the irrepressible Dooly, and his faithful dog Ahab. It would have been such a pleasant trip, if not for the weeping skeleton, mad goblins, magic coins, an evil dwarf, a cloak of invisibility-and a watch that stopped time. Of course, the return trip was not so simple...

Jonathan Bing, Master Cheeser, has been growing a bit bored in Twombly Town. So it's no surprise that when Professor Wurzle suggests a trip downriver, Jonathan jumps at the chance. A visit to the Evil Dwarf Selznak's abandoned castle leads to a treasure hunt, but also to the discovery that Jonathan's old friend the Squire has vanished, and that Selznak may be involved. Jonathan-accompanied by his wonderpooch Ahab, the Professor, and Miles the Magician-will have to set off to darkest Balumnia, to the city of Landsend, to find the treasure, and the Squire. And to make matters worse, Selznak will be there, too …

Jonathan Bing wasn't the first citizen of Twombly Town to have a run-in with Selznak the Dwarf. Meet the young Theophile Escargot, aggrieved former citizen of Twombly Town. Divorced, exiled, and humiliated (all for the crime of eating his own pie), he sets off down the Oriel River in search of a fetching barmaid, only to find himself traveling by submarine into fabled Balumnia, where is he is beset on all sides by an evil dwarf, a piratical elf, a stone giant, and an unlucky bag of marbles. With a little help, Escargot must rescue his true love, save the elves, and-most importantly-redeem his dignity. Revisit the world of The Elfin Ship and The Disappearing Dwarf, and discover where the adventures began.